Golden , Extra Fluffy Pancakes !!

 

 

Thinking of having a wonderful breakfast or some evening/midnight snack ? Pancakes !!! pancakes ...pancakes mmm yumm yummm

 

Ingredients:
All - purpose - flour - 1 cup
baking powder - 2 tbsp
Sugar - 3 tbsp
salt - 1 pinch
Egg - 1
milk - 1 cup
vanilla essence - a few drops. (optional)

 

Method :

 

Add the egg to a bowl and give it a good beating. Good enough to make some bubbles appear. Then add in some sugar and salt and mix well. Add the milk and essence. Now , slowly add the flour and baking powder and mix well.

If you want to adjust the consistency , you can reduce or increase the milk amount. But this measurement will be perfect.
Let it rest for 30 mins.
Heat a pan, grease with butter, add one full spoon onto pan. Let it spread on its own. Wait till bubbles appear on the top.
Now, its time to flip over.. Flip and let it cook for a minute. The pancake will fluff up..
Serve hot and maple syrup, honey or jam :))!! Top it with blueberries, strawberries, banana , etc and Enjoy with lots and lots of Maple Syrup

Tips:

• Making the consistency watery will make the pancake very thin and hard. Thicker the consistency,softer and fluffier the pancakes !!
• Once the batter is ready, let it rest for atleast 30 minutes. It helps !!

Do share comments !!!



Vada Curry

Vada Curry with Idly or Dosa is one of my favourite breakfast menu !!! Here's what you ll need..
Ingredients:
To make Vada:
Channa Dal - 1 cup
Moongh Dal - 1/4 cup
Urad Dal - 1/4 cup
Raw rice - 1 tbsp
Fenugreek seeds - 1/4 tbsp

For the curry:
Curry leaves - hand full
Cinnamon - 1 inch stick
Cloves - 4
Cardamom  - 3
Bay leaf - 1
Onion - 1
Tomato - 2
ginger garlic paste - 1 tbsp
chilli powder - 1 tbsp
coriander powder - 3 tbsp
turmeric powder - 1/2 tbsp
salt - to taste
oil - as required

Method:
Coarsely grind the vada ingredients, and keep in a bowl. To this paste, add, salt, curry leaves, asafotida and mix well. Now, make small patties, flatten it and deep fry in hot oil..When cool, break it down into small pieces. Keep aside.

In a pan, add oil. When hot, add he spices ( cardamom, cloves , cinnamon, bay leaf ).. fry to a few secs
Add curry leaves, onions and stir fry till onions turn golden brown. Then add ginger garlic paste and fry for 1 min. Then add sliced tomatoes and fry till its cooked..
Now, add the chilli, coriander and turmeric powder, salt , little water and let it cook for 2 mins..
Now, add the vada pieces and mix well.. Add required water for the consistency you want. cook for 2 mins and turn off flame. Garnish with coriander leaves !!!
Enjoy vada curry with steaming hot idlies, dosa, puri or chapattis..and simply just like that !!

Chicken - Paneer Bistique Snack Wraps

Ingredients:
Bistique Flour - 1 cup (for 4 snack wraps)
For filling - any veggies of your choice. I used - Bell Pepper, onions, paneer
Baked chicken - bite size pieces
Egg -1 ( scramble it)
Salt
Pepper
oil

Method:
Mix the flour with warm water and salt and kneed a soft dough.
Keep aside while we prepare the filling.
Meanwhile, bake or shallow fry the chicken till done.
In a pan, add 1 tbsp olive oil, add the onions, bell peppers, paneer, chicken, salt and pepper and blend them well. Toss till the paneer is cooked.
Turn off heat. Let it cool while we prepare the wraps.
Also, make egg scrambles in the meanwhile and allow to cool.( This is optional)
Divide the dough into 4 parts. roll them cook like tortillas.
Serve wrap with filling and ketchup. Ensoy..:)

Tips:
I used, Bistique pan cake mix just for a change in making the wraps. You can use any flour of your choice.

Samba Puttu

Ingredients:

Samba/ Chemba Puttu Flour - 2 cups

Salt - 1 tbsp
Water - as required

Shredded coconut - as required

Sugar - as required

For Puttu:

• Wet the flour with water,add salt and keep aside for 5 mins.
• In Puttu Kolal, add 2 hand full flour, then 1 hand full coconut, repeat the same till you reach the end of the puttu (kolal )vessel.
• Place it on top of the pressure cooker, and steam it.
• Puttu will be ready in 5 to 10 mins.
• Transfer to plate, add sugar and enjoy with Green gram dhal ( cooked and sugar added) and papad.

Tips:

1. If you dont have a puttu kolal/ vessel, spread the puttu flour with the shredded coconut on a tray and steam it by placing inside the cooker.
2. Pressure cook the green gram dhal in cooker, and use the pressure outside to steam to Puttu... All in one !!! ..
3. Follow the same steps for 'White Puttu' as well..

Good for an ideal breakfast !!! Tastes Yummy yummy .... Enjoy

Dahi/Curd Vada

For Vada:

Urud Dhal - 1 cup

Moongh Dhal - 1/4 cup (optional)

Salt - to taste

Curd - as required

Chat masala - 1 pinch

chilli powder - 1 pinch

Coriander leaves - to garnish

Boondhi - to garnish ( optional)

For Curd Vada:

• Vada: Soak the urud dhal + moongh dhal overnight or for 6 hours. Then grind it into a fine paste. Add salt and keep aside.
• Heat oil in a pan, take small amount of batter in hand or plastic cover, make a small hole in the centre ( like a doughnut) and deep fry it in oil. Remove once golden brown, squeeze excess oil and soak it in water with salt added to it for 10 mins. Squeeze extra water and keep aside.
• Take required curd in a bowl, add salt, chat masala, chilli powder and mix well to make it creamy.
• Place the vada's in a serving dish, pour the curd layering the vada's fully and garnish with chat masala, chilli powder, coriander leaves, boondhi (optional)

Enjoy Curd Vada ...

Tips:

1. Use slightly sour curd for Curd Vada..
2. Well, if you dont get to make the doughnut hole at the centre, forget it. I dont get it either. The taste is all that matters. You ll get it over time..

Appam

How to Make Appam Batter :

Raw Rice - 2 cups

Boiled Rice - 2 cups

Urud Dhal - 2 tbsp

Coconut - 1/2 mudi

Coconut water - 1 cup( optional)

Ripe Banana - 1 (optional)

Appam Soda/Baking Soda - 1/4 tbsp

Salt - to taste

sugar - 1 tbsp

• Soak the rice and dhal for 2 hours in warm water and add to grinder to make a fine paste. You can add coconut water to the grinder instead of water to get the consistency. Also adding 1 or 2 ripe banana's to the batter while grinding will give a different flavor. Its however optional.
• Grind the coconut into a fine paste in a blender/mixer and add to grinder to blend with the remaining ingredients. Once done, store the batter in an airtight container for minimum 6 hours.
• Now take only the required amount of batter you need, and refrigerate the remaining.
• Now, to the batter to be used, add 1/4 tbsp appa soda/ baking soda, sugar - 1 tbsp, and salt - to taste and let it remain for 1/2 an hour for the batter to get fermented.

Now your appam batter is ready.

For Appam:

• Take a non stick kadai that is curved inwards. if you dont have a curved pan, use a flat non stick pan.
• Add 2 spoons of batter to the centre of the kadai and holding the handle, spread the batter to the sides. Close with lid and let it cook for 2 mins.

Serve hot with Stew or and curry or coconut milk. ....

Tips:

1. To make sure the shredded coconut is ground into a fine paste and that we dont have any bite size coconut pieces, i grind the coconut separately in a blender and then add to grinder along with the other ingredients. You can try adding the coconut directly to grinder as well.
2. Adding sugar gives a crisp and Browning effect to the outer circle of the appam. If you want white appam, avoid adding sugar.

Rava Upma

One of the easiest recipies in indian cooking is Upma. It gets ready in just 10 mins or less. And very essential for Breakfast !!! In my childhood days, i used to not like Upma that much... But now, that i realize how great my mother's cooking is and how great is tastes .... I just love it !!! and i make Upma quite often ...:)

So here's what you ll need :

Ingredients :

Roasted Rave Upma - 1 cup

Small Onions/Shallots - 4 (chopped)

Green Chillies - 2 ( slit , not chopped)

Ginger - 1" piece (chopped)

Curry Leaves - few

Mustard - 1 tbsp

Oil - 2 tbsp

water - 3 cups

Salt - To taste

For Rava Upma:

• Heat oil in pan, roast rava till slightly brown and keep aside. If you are using Roasted Rava, you need not roast again.
• Again, Heat oil in pan, Add mustard, curry leaves, ginger pieces, green chillies (slit - not chopped ), chopped small onions/shallots and fry for 2 mins
• Now add the rava and water. For 1 cup rava, add 2 1/2 to 3 cups water.
• After adding water, add salt to taste and cover with lid ti let it cook till water evaporates.
• Rava Upma wiwll be ready in 10 mins ...
• Server hot with chutney or sugar or banana...

I love upma with banana ... Ya, not a regular combination. But, this combination works great for me ... Infact, one of the reason for me liking upma is having Upma with Banana... Just smash a ripe banana with the upma and relish ...

Enjoy your upma ...

Tips:

1. Try the same recipe with Semiya ... Semiya Upma...
2. If you dont have small onions, use Big Onions. Small Onions just give a unique and excellent taste.

Rava Idli

Ingredients:
Upma rava - 2 cups

Fine semia -1/2 cup. Broken coarsely (optional)

Curd - 1-1/2 cup (even old/sour curd is fine, in fact better!)

Green chillies -4 to 5. chopped

Carrot - 1 grated

Curry leaves - few

Cumin seeds (Jeera) - 1 tbsp

Mustard - 1/2 tbsp.

Urad dal - 1/2 tbsp

Freshly chopped coriander leaves - hand full.

if you have. (I dont :( 2-3 tsp fresh grated coconut ,

Oil/ghee - 2 tbsp

Salt -to taste

For Rava Idli:

• In a kadai/pressure pan heat oil/ghee.
• Add cumin ,urad dal, mustard and curry leaves.
• When mustard splutters, add the rava and keep on (low ) flame till rava is light brown and the aroma of rava is in the air .(If using semia, please roast that too -semia makes the idli lighter ).
• Switch off the flame.
• Add the chopped green chilly , coriander, salt to the rava mixture.
• When slightly cool, add the curd till you get a consistency of idli batter.
• Leave for 10-15 minutes. (The mixture will soak up the curd and become thicker.Add some curd again later) .
• Meanwhile grease the idli plates .
• Spoon the mixture into the plates, top each idli with some grated coconut and carrot (or you can mix the coconut and carrot into the rava-curd mixture for even ness).
• Steam as usual.

And enjoy your fermentation and fuss free rava idli :)

Spicy Ven Pongal

Was thinking what to make for breakfast today...Thought ill make pongal..Spicy Ven pongal.

There s what you ll need:

Ingredients:

Moongh Dhal : Rice = 1 : 2 ratio. So 1/4 cup Dhal + 3/4 cup rice.

Oil ~ Gingerly oil

Curry Leaves - few

Cumin Seeds ( jeera) - 1tbsp

Whole Pepper - 1 to 1 1/2 tbsp

Ginger - chopped pieces

Green Chilli - 3 to 4

Ghee ..- 2 tbsp

Salt - to taste

For Ven Pongal:

• Heat the cooker, Add oil + ghee, when hot, add cumin seeds, pepper, curry leaves, green chillies, chopped ginger, and fry for 2 mins.
• Add the washed dhal + rice to the cooker. Add water and salt.
• For 1 cup of dhal + rice, add 3 to 3 1/2 cups water. ( i.e., add a lil extra than adding for making rice)
• All set...close the cooker, add the weight and let it cook for 4 whistles.
• Pongal will be ready in just 10 mins.

Enjoy Spicy with Chutney or Sambar ...

Tips:

1. You can add onions or shallots to increase the taste...
2. If you dont have a cooker, you can also use a vessel with a lid and carry out the above steps.
3. Adding milk along with the water before cooking the pongal will add more flavor to the pongal.